Tag Archives: Aragon

Jul23

Chapel of the Holy Grail – Valencia, Spain

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Tales and Travels of the Tin Man

It was time to board the train from Madrid to Valencia.

The anticipation was great, as we were going to visit The Chapel of The Holy Grail, something I had been looking forward to on this trip. I could hear the music from the Indiana Jones movies playing in my head, as the train was zipping through the countryside of Spain.

We arrived at Estacio del Nord in Valencia and began our quest for the Holy Grail…

First a bit about this special city; Valencia was founded as a Roman colony in 138 BC.

The city is situated on the banks of the Turia river, on the east coast of the Iberian Peninsula, fronting the Gulf of Valencia on the Mediterranean Sea.

Major monuments include Valencia Cathedral

the Torres de Serranos,

the Torres de Quart,

the Llotja de la Seda declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1996

and the City of Arts and Sciences, an entertainment-based cultural and architectural complex designed by Santiago Calatrava and Félix Candela

The Museu de Belles Arts de València houses a large collection of paintings from the 14th to the 18th centuries, including works by Velázquez, El Greco, and Goya, as well as an important series of engravings by Piranesi

The Metropolitan Cathedral–Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady of Valencia was consecrated in 1238 by the first bishop of Valencia after the Reconquista, Pere d’Albalat, Archbishop of Tarragona, and was dedicated by order of James I the Conqueror to Saint Mary. It was built over the site of the former Visigothic cathedral, which under the Moors had been turned into a mosque

The cathedral contains numerous 15th century paintings, some by local artists (such as Jacomart), others by artists from Rome engaged by the Valencian Pope Alexander VI

who, when still a cardinal, made the request to elevate the Valencian See to the rank of metropolitan see, a category granted by Pope Innocent VIII in 1492

Here are a couple by Goya….

On our way to find the Chapel of the Holy Grail we stumble upon a mummified arm in a glass case…….yikes!

Turns out it is that of Saint Vincent, the Patron Saint of Valencia.

Tthe story of Saint Vincent the Martyr begins (ends) when they tried to burn him but his body wouldn’t burn so they tied 4 horses to each of his limbs, whipped the horses and let them run, tearing him apart in the middle of the city, so today one of his arms rests in the Cathedral.

Okay, past the arm and ……..hello …….tombs…

Okay, move on, it is time to find the Holy Chalice the most revered in the world right here in one of this cathedral’s chapels; this chalice has been defended as the true Holy Grail

………and there it is! The Chapel is filled with the smell of incense that has been burning for hundreds of years…..

Most Christian historians all over the world declare that all their evidence points to this Valencian chalice as the most likely candidate for being the authentic cup used at the Last Supper

It was the official papal chalice for many popes, and has been used by many others, most recently by Pope Benedict XVI, on July 9, 2006

This chalice dates from the 1st century, and was given to the cathedral by king Alfonso V of Aragon in 1436.

It was quite exciting to be in this place and be in the presence of this acclaimed artifact (by now the music score from the Indiana Jones Movies was BLARING inside my head)…..time to move on..

We visited the rest of the Cathedral, which was quite beautiful and filled with amazing artifacts…

……wow that was a most exciting and interesting visit…now off to explore the city….

We found Valencia to be incredibly clean and well kept. The people were so helpful and friendly!

We had heard about Canela, a most well respected and sought after restaurant….

We arrived when the owner was closing and locking the door…………..NO, please let us in, please……guess what …….. he said yes!!

We went upstairs and the art was amazing…

The meal was the BEST of our entire lifetimes! A seven course delight…

the final course ….. Paella con Arroz Negro…..Paella with rice made with squid ink

Over the Top AMAZING

If you are ever near Vallence….you MUST eat at Canela

But you know the Tin Man………it is now time to search out the sweets Valencia is known for …….CHOCOLATE

We found it at Valor, known for their outstanding Chocolates….right on the Plaza de la Reyna…

Of course we had the Chocolate Flight with Churros…..

What experiences and delights we enjoyed in beautiful Valencia….but now it is time to move on…until next time…Adios

May22

The Aqueduct of Segovia – Spain

Posted on May 22, 2013 by Tales and Travels of the Tin Man

Standard

Segovia is a Spanish city of about 55,000 people in the Castile-Leon province of Spain, about an hour north of Madrid.

Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the old city of Segovia is spectacularly situated atop a long, narrow promontory.

It contains a wealth of monuments, including a cathedral, a magnificent ancient Roman aqueduct, and the beautiful fairy-tale spires of the Alcázar, or castle-palace, that towers over the countryside below.

Scattered about the city are a half a dozen Romanesque churches of great interest, and a church that was once a synagogue.

The Roman aqueduct of Segovia, probably built c. A.D. 50, is remarkably well preserved. This impressive construction, with its two tiers of arches, forms part of the setting of the magnificent historic city of Segovia.

The Aqueduct of Segovia is one of the most significant and best-preserved ancient monuments left on the Iberian Peninsula. It is the foremost symbol of Segovia, as evidenced by its presence on the city’s coat of arms.

At the end of the 20th century, a German archaeologist managed to decipher the text on the dedication plaque of the aqueduct by studying the anchors that held the now missing bronze letters in place. Using this method, he was able to determine that in actuality it was the Roman Emperor Domitian who ordered its construction.

The aqueduct transports waters from Fuente Fría River, situated in the nearby mountains, from the city in a region known as La Acebeda.

The first reconstruction of the aqueduct took place during the reign of the King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. A total of 36 arches were rebuilt, with great care taken not to change any of the original work or style.

The aqueduct is the city’s most important architectural landmark. It had been kept functioning throughout the centuries and is preserved in excellent condition. It even provided water to Segovia until recently! Because of decay of stone blocks, water leakage from the upper viaduct, and pollution that caused the granite masonry to deteriorate and crack, the site was listed in the 2006 World Monuments Watch by the World Monuments Fund. Contrary to popular belief, vibrations caused by traffic that used to pass under the arches did not affect the aqueduct due to its great mass.

Spain brought together the Ministry of Culture, the regional government of Castilla y León, and other local institutions to collaborate in implementing the project, and provided assistance through the global financial services company American Express. The Aqueduct is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We walked the entire length of the Aqueduct, while gazing up in wonderment. You can actually walk along the top………of course chicken Tin Man said no to that idea!

It was quite amazing to see this impressive architectural achievement. The excitement and physical activity worked up an appetite, so off in search of culinary delights, we went.

We found an ancient place, Meson El Cordero

and what a delight it was….

The Bean Soup was our very favorite….it is a traditional dish from the area….

….followed by the Roast Suckling Pig…

…and a marvelous assortment of sweets…

Thank you for joining me in this walk under the Aqueduct of Segovia…

…we have been traveling about Europe for the past six weeks and I plan to share many more stories with you soon….

May8

The Flag of Sicily

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Tales and Travels of the Tin Man

Standard

After my recent trip to Sicily, many viewers have asked about the Flag of Sicily, so I thought I might provide a few interesting tidbits of information……..

Flag of the Sicilian Region Italiano: Bandiera della Regione Siciliana Sicilianu: Bannera dâ Riggiuni Siciliana Deutsch: Flagge der Sizilianischen Region (oder der Autonomen Region Sizilien) Français : Drapeau de la Région Sicilienne Español: Bandera de la Región Siciliana Português: Bandeira da Região Siciliana (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The flag of Sicily was first adopted in 1282, after the successful revolt against Charles I of Sicily.

It is characterized by the presence of the triskelion in its middle, the winged head of Medusa and three wheat ears.

Sicilian Triskelion (Photo credit: NatalieMaynor)

The three bent legs allegedly represent the three points of the triangular shape of the island of Sicily itself.

The present design became the official public flag of the Autonomous Region of Sicily on January 4, 2000, after the passing of an apposite law which advocates its use on public buildings, schools, city halls, and all the other places in which Sicily is represented.

The flag is bisected diagonally into regions colored red and yellow, red representing the municipality of Palermo, yellow representing Corleone, which in medieval times was an agricultural city of renown. Palermo and Corleone were the first two cities to found a confederation against the Capetian House of Angevin rule.

The flag looks somewhat similar to the flag of the Isle of Man,

especially for the use of the triskelion in both of these; today, the triskelion (or ”trisceli”) is also widely considered the actual symbol of Sicily. The symbol is also known as the ”trinacria”, which is also an ancient name of Sicily. The name was also revived and used during the Aragonese period of the Kingdom of Sicily immediately after the Sicilian Vespers (1282) which ended Angevin rule.

During the period of Muslim rule under Emirate of Sicily. Sicily used a pure green flag, similar to the former national Flag of Libya, Great Socialist People’s Libyan Arab Jamahiriya (1977–2011) under Muammar Gaddafi.

The national flag of the Libyan Jamahiriya. This is a duplication of File:Flag of Libya.svg by Zscout370, anticipating that because of the ongoing civil war, the filename “Flag of Libya” will not be unambiguous in the near future. An unambiguous description of this flag is that it is the flag of the Libyan Jamahiriya introduced in 1977. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Coat of arms of Sicily (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Flag of the Kingdom of Sicily (1243 to 1410) Italiano: Bandiera del Regno di Sicilia (1243 – 1410) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is the flag of the Sicilian Independence Movement of the 1940s and was used by Salvatore Giuliano. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The Ruins of Selinunte – Sicily (the-tin-man.com)
Lunch on the Beach – Ristorante La Pineta : Marinella di Selinute – Sicily (the-tin-man.com)
Mozia – The Whitaker Museum – Dinner at Fior di Sale (the-tin-man.com)

Tales and Travels of the Tinman

Lessons We Have Learned Since Oz

Tag Archives: Aragon

Chapel of the Holy Grail – Valencia, Spain

The Aqueduct of Segovia – Spain

The Flag of Sicily

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Related articles

Share this:

Like this: